Josiah sets up the Passover celebration                                            verse 1- 4

 

Moreover Josiah kept a Passover to the LORD in Jerusalem

and they killed the Passover

on the fourteenth day of the first month

And he set the priests in their charges

and encouraged them to the  service of

the house of the LORD

And said to the Levites that TAUGHT all Israel

            which were holy to the LORD

Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon

            the son of David king of Israel did build

It shall not be a burden upon your shoulders

serve now the LORD your God

and HIS people Israel

And prepare yourselves by the houses of your fathers

after your courses according to the writing of

David king of Israel

and according to the writing of

Solomon his son 

Josiah sets up the killing of the Passover sacrifices                          verse 5- 6 

And stand in the holy place according to the divisions

of the families of the fathers of your brethren the people

and after the division of the families of the Levites

So kill the Passover – and SANCTIFY yourselves

and prepare your brethren

that they may do according to the word of the LORD

by the hand of Moses 

Josiah and leaders provide animals                                                  verse 7- 9 

And Josiah gave to the people – of the flocks lambs and kids

            all for the Passover offerings – for all that were present

                        to the number of thirty thousand – three thousand bullocks

                                    these were of the king’s substance

And his princes gave willingly

to the people – to the priests – to the Levites

Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel – rulers of the house of God

            gave to the priests for the Passover offerings two thousand

                        and six hundred small cattle and three hundred oxen

Conaniah also – and Shemaiah and Nethaneel – his brethren

            and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad – chief of the Levites

gave unto the Levites for Passover offerings

five thousand small cattle and five hundred oxen 

Sacrifices done properly for Passover celebration                           verse 10- 13 

So the service was prepared – and the priests stood in their place

and the Levites in their courses – according to the

king’s commandment

And they killed the Passover – and the priests sprinkled the blood

from their hands -and the Levites flayed them

And they removed the burnt offerings – that they might give

according to the divisions of the families of the people

to offer to the LORD

as it is written in the book of Moses

                                                and so did they with the oxen

And they roasted the Passover with fire according to the ordinance

            but the other holy offerings sod they in pots – caldrons – pans

and divided them speedily among all the people 

Levites helped the priests                                                                 verse 14 

And afterward they made ready for themselves – and for the priests

            BECAUSE the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in

offering of burnt offerings and the fat until night

THEREFORE the Levites prepared for themselves

            and for the priests the sons of Aaron 

Singers were in their proper place                                                   verse 15 

And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place

            according to the commandment of David

                        and Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun – the king’s seer

And the porters waited at every gate

            they might not depart from their service

                        for their brethren the Levites prepared for them 

Passover celebration best since Samuel’s time                               verse 16- 19 

So all the service of the LORD was prepared the same day

to keep the Passover – and to offer burnt offerings

upon the altar of the LORD

according to the commandment of king Josiah

And the children of Israel that were present kept the Passover

at that time and the feast of unleavened bread seven days

And there was no Passover like to that kept in Israel

from the days of Samuel, the prophet

neither did all the kings of Israel

keep such a Passover as Josiah kept – and the priests

and the Levites – and all Judah and Israel

that were present

and the inhabitants of Jerusalem

In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah was this Passover kept 

Josiah goes to war with Egypt                                                         verse 20- 21 

After all this – when Josiah had prepared the temple

Necho – king of Egypt came up to fight against Charchemish

by Euphrates

and Josiah went out against him

BUT he sent ambassadors to him

saying

What have I to do with you you king of Judah?

            I come not against you this day

BUT against the house wherewith I have war for God

commanded me to make haste

                        forbear you from meddling with God

WHO is with me that HE destroy you not 

Josiah wounded in battle                                                                verse 22- 23 

Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him

BUT disguised himself that he might fight with him

and hearken not to the words of Necho

from the mouth of God

and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo

And the archers shot at king Josiah – and the king said to his servants

            Have me away – for I am sore wounded 

Josiah dies                                                                                       verse 24- 25 

His servants therefore took him out of that chariot

            and put him in the second chariot that he had

                        and they brought him to Jerusalem – and he died

                                    and was buried in one of the sepulchers of his fathers

All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah

            and Jeremiah lamented for Josiah – and all the singing men

and the singing women spoke of Josiah

in their lamentations to this day

and made them an ordinance in Israel

                        and BEHOLD             they are written in the lamentations

 

Record of reign of Josiah                                                               verse 26- 27 

Now the rest of the acts of Josiah – and his goodness

            according to that which was written in the law of the LORD

                        and his deeds – first and last – BEHOLD

                                    they are written in the book of the kings of Israel

and Judah 

 

COMMENTARY:          

 

DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers 

: 2        And he set the priests in their charges, and encouraged them to the service of the house of the LORD (2388 “encouraged” [chazaq] means keep hold of, grow or make strong, grow firm, strengthened, to inspire with confidence, or give hope or courage to)

DEVOTION:  There is a division of responsibility in every worship service. Each person involved has their purpose for being there to honor the LORD. The priests have their purpose to offer the sacrifices to the LORD. The Levites have their purposes which were to help the priests with the sacrifices. There was a group of priests assigned on the day they celebrated the Passover who had to do their duties which was to make sure the sacrifices were done properly.

The king wanted everything to go well for this celebration and he want around encouraging the priests as they were sacrificing. He wanted them to know that he appreciated their work for the LORD. He wanted them to know that the people were depending on them to make sure the sacrifices were offered to the LORD properly.

We have a responsibility as those who serve the LORD to be individuals who encourage others in their service to the LORD. We can encourage young believers if we use them in places where they can serve the LORD. One of the areas is the taking of the offering at times in a service in the church. Another area is in the area of singing. There are children’s choirs that sing once a month.

It is not only the leaders responsibility to encourage all those who make a worship service honorable to the LORD but it is the responsibility of all the members of a congregation to encourage one another each Sunday.

If everyone leaves the church encouraged in the LORD there is a better opportunity for them to be a witness for the LORD during the week. The LORD commands us to be encouraging one another.

CHALLENGE:  Who have you encourage today??? Or who will you encourage today with a phone call or a smile or just doing something nice for them? 

DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers 

: 15      And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jedjuthun the king’s seer; and the porters waited at every gate; that they might not depart from their service; for their brethren the Levites prepared for them. (7891 “singers” [shiyr] means a person who sings, use the voice as an instrument of praise, song leader, or expressing praise to the LORD using their voice)

DEVOTION:  I love to sing. I watch people at times when I am leading singing and when I am in the pew singing songs. It is great to see people who truly enjoy singing. It is sad when you are part of a congregation that has some wonderful songs of praise to sing to the LORD and see individuals who look like they are being tortured while others are singing.

I know that my voice is one that people tend to move away from instead of toward but we are all there to praise the LORD for the provision of salvation and for the fellowship we can have with fellow believers.

The Levites had a group from the family of Asaph that wrote songs to be sung and led the children of Israel at times when there was singing involved. This was such an occasion. They were doing their duty to the LORD by singing and leading the people in praise to the LORD.

Song leaders are important in worship services. If they have no enthusiasm, it is hard to follow them. We need to make sure that our singing is praising the LORD. Some singing sounds like there is no enthusiasm. People are just going through the motions instead of having their heart in their singing.

At this celebration of the Passover there was heart in the singing. This should be true in all of our worship services as well. We need to realize that the LORD is listening to our singing.

CHALLENGE: Encourage all to participate with enthusiasm when they sing. Remember our voices are heard by the LORD first before anyone else. HE knows our heart!!

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: 19      In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah was this Passover kept. (6453 “Passover” [pecach] means a seven day festival celebrating God’s “passing over” the houses of the Israelites because of the blood of the lamb, which culminated in the people’s exodus from Egypt)

DEVOTION:  Josiah was eight years old when he became king. This is eighteen years later, so he is twenty – six years old when he celebrated the Passover. He made sure that everything was prepared properly. He set all the priests and Levites in their proper order according to the plan that David established when he was king.

All the details were done according to the writings of Moses when he wrote the commands of God before they entered the Promised Land. He wanted to make sure that this was the best celebration he could put together for the LORD. He wanted to honor the LORD. He wanted the LORD to forgive the past and prosper the future of the nation.

He wanted the people to remember what the LORD did in Egypt to bring the children of Israel out of slavery into a place where they could serve the LORD without fear.

It was said that there had not been such as celebration since the days of Samuel. It was an honor to really honor the LORD in their celebration of their freedom from slavery.

We were once slaves to sin but once we became a follower of the LORD HE took the chains of sin off and put on the robes of righteousness that we could have because of what HIS Son, Jesus Christ did on the cross by shedding HIS blood for our sins.

Only the blood of Christ can give us the freedom from slavery to sin. The blood of the lamb at Passover was a reminder to the children of Israel that they were brought out of slavery and protected by the LORD from the angel of death that went through every house in Egypt killing the firstborn in each family.

Our deliverance is based solely on the blood of Jesus Christ and not on our good works. There are no works we can do that will please God enough to give us salvation. It is a gift that we receive because of the blood of Jesus Christ alone.

CHALLENGE:  All of our service after salvation is a service of gratitude for what we have in Christ. It gives us the strength to honor and bring glory to the LORD every day that we live on this earth.

DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers

: 21      But he sent ambassadors to him, saying, “What have I to do with you, you king of Judah?” I come not against you this day, but against the house wherewith I have war: for God commanded me to make haste: forbear you from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroyed you not. (926 “haste” [bahal] means to tremble inwardly, be alarmed or agitated, speedy, thrust out, trouble or vex)

DEVOTION:  Can we get so caught up in our service to the LORD that we forget to listen to the LORD? Can God speak to heathen kings? Does God use government to do HIS bidding regarding judgment?

Here is an example of someone who wanted to and did serve the LORD greatly that was not always listening to the LORD. God spoke to the king of Egypt. God told him to move with speed. The Egyptian king listened to the LORD. He warned Josiah that he was on a mission for God. He told him he didn’t want to fight him.

Josiah didn’t listen to the message from God by this Egyptian king. Josiah was feeling good after celebrating the Passover. The people were behind him. He disguised himself and went to fight with the king of Egypt anyway. An archer shot an arrow into the air and Josiah was hit. He was mortally wounded. He was taken back to Jerusalem where he died.

It seemed anything that he would do would please the LORD. He went to battle. He died in the battle. God sometimes talks to us through people who we don’t consider “Christian.” And because they are not one of us, we don’t think we should listen.

We need to listen to what people say to us regarding things we do in our lives. God might be speaking through an unlikely source to help us. God used a donkey to talk with a man on his way to curse the children of Israel. Are we willing to listen to people that are around us regarding what the LORD would have us do with our lives?

CHALLENGE: The Bible says that in the multitude of counselors there is wisdom. Listen to those around you. Even people who are not followers of the LORD have something we need to listen to. Are we good listeners?

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: 22      Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him but disguised himself, that he might fight with him, and hearkened not to the words of Necho from the mouth of the God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo. (6310 “mouth” [peh] means opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge, statement, decision, communication, or orifice)

DEVOTION: Does God speak to unsaved people? Here is a king of a foreign nation telling the king of Judah that God told him to fight with Babylon but not with him. Pharaoh Neco was going to fight against another heathen nation, the nation of Babylon under that leadership of Prince Nebuchadrezzar.

Josiah was not listening to this unsaved king who was doing the LORD’S work for HIM. There should have been no problem with Josiah just letting Pharaoh pass through his land and go to war with another heathen nation.

This didn’t happen. Josiah was feeling his oat .and wanted to fight. This was not something that the LORD commanded him to do. He just thought that because he was doing so much for God that God would give him the victory.

However, we see that he disguised himself, just in case. This didn’t work. He was not doing what the LORD wanted him to do and he had to pay the consequences of his actions.

The LORD allowed him to be killed because he was not listening to HIM or to Pharaoh. Do we sometime want to do something that the LORD has not commanded us to do thinking that we were doing something good?

We have to be open to the direction of the LORD. I know that I have had occasion when I was moving ahead of the LORD. I have always been in a hurry. I want everything done yesterday. HE has slowed me down on many occasions in ways that I didn’t appreciate at the time.

So if we don’t wait on the LORD. We might end up like Josiah. He wanted to fight and lost his life. He wanted to think that he could defeat anyone because of all the good works that he had done for the LORD.

However, just because we are doing good works for the LORD, it doesn’t mean that we can walk ahead of the LORD and what HE wants in our life. We have to be in prayer daily to make sure we are walking WITH the LORD and not AHEAD of the LORD.

It is not easy but it is what we have to do if we want the blessings of the LORD each day.

Too often I have met individuals who wanted something done for them but it was not the LORD’S will at the time or in fact it could never be HIS will for that individual. However, it might be HIS will in the future if we are willing to wait on HIM.

CHALLENGE:  We have to watch that we don’t become head strong and not heart right with the LORD. It cost Josiah his life.

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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:

BODY

Chastity (Purity in living)

Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)

Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)

Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)

Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)

SOUL

Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)

Frugality (wise use of resources)

Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD 

            Writings of David king of Israel                                       verse 4

            Writings of Solomon                                                        verse 4 

Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)

Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)

SPIRIT

Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)

Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)

Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)

Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)

Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group) 

Passover                                                                       verse 1- 18

Priests                                                                          verse 2, 8 –

House of the LORD                                                      verse 2

Levites                                                                          verse 3, 5, 8 – 18

            Taught all Israel

            Hilkiah

            Zechariah

            Jehiel

Holy ark in house of the LORD                                   verse 3

Passover offerings                                                       verse 7- 9, 11, 16

House of God                                                             verse 8

Sprinkling of blood                                                     verse 11

Burnt offerings                                                            verse 12, 14, 16

Holy offerings                                                             verse 13

Singers – sons of Asaph                                             verse 15

Feast of Unleavened Bread                                        verse 17 

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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:

Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible) 

Writings of David                                                       verse 4

Writings of Solomon                                                 verse 4

Written in book of Moses                                         verse 6, 12

Ordinance                                                                  verse 13, 25

Commandment of David                                          verse 15

Written in the lamentation                                       verse 25

Written in the law of the LORD                                verse 26

Book of the kings of Israel and Judah                      verse 27

 

God the Father (First person of the Godhead)

 

LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal)       verse 1- 3, 6, 12,

16, 26

House of the LORD                                                   verse 2

God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign)                            verse 3, 8, 21

LORD your God                                                         verse 3

Word of the LORD                                                    verse 6

House of God                                                            verse 8

Service of the LORD                                                  verse 16

Altar of the LORD                                                      verse 16

Mouth of God                                                           verse 22

            God spoke through Necho – king of Egypt

Law of the LORD                                                       verse 26 

God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)

God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)

Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)    

Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)

Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)

 

Necho – king of Egypt                                              verse 20, 21

            Told Josiah to not come out

against  him

                                    God commanded him to make

                                                haste against Babylon

Charchemish                                                             verse 20

God commanded Necho                                          verse 21

God with Necho                                                        verse 21 

Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels) 

Josiah didn’t forbear                                                 verse 21

Meddling with God                                                   verse 21

Against the mouth of God                                        verse 22 

Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins) 

Encouraged                                                               verse 2

Taught                                                                       verse 3

Holy                                                                          verse 3

Sanctify                                                                    verse 6

Prepare your brethren                                             verse 6

Gave willingly                                                          verse 8

Goodness                                                                 verse 26 

Israel (Old Testament people of God) 

Josiah                                                                       verse 1, 7, 19 – 27

            Gave people flocks, lambs, kids

                        for Passover offerings

            18^th year was Passover kept

            Went out against Necho – king of Egypt

            Archers shot king Josiah

            Brought to Jerusalem

            Buried him there

            His deeds written in book of deeds of kings

                        of Israel and Judah

Jerusalem                                                                 verse 1

Passover kept                                                           verse 1- 19

Solomon                                                                   verse 3

David                                                                        verse 3, 15

Israel HIS people                                                      verse 3

Hand of Moses                                                         verse 6

Princes                                                                      verse 8

            Gave 2,600 cattle

            Gave 300 oxen

Children of Israel                                                      verses 17

Samuel                                                                      verse 18

Jeremiah lamented for Josiah                                  verse 25

            With singing men and women 

Church (New Testament people of God)

Last Things (Future Events)

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QUOTES regarding passage 

The Levites’ special concern for their fellow priests (v. 14), musicians and gatekeepers (v. 15), as well as for (lit.) ‘your brothers the lay people’ (vv. 5, 6; cf. v. 13b), offers a better model of how to behave at a communion meal than the attitudes shown by the Corinthian Christians (1 Cor. 11:17–22, 27–34)! They distributed the food first to the lay people (v. 13b), but also made sure that those on duty did not lose out (vv. 14–15). Made (the) preparations (vv. 14, 15) really means ‘made the arrangements for’, since the verb is the same as ‘arranged’ in verses 10, 16 (reb, neb; cf. also 2 Chr. 29:35). (Selman, M. J. (1994). 2 Chronicles: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 11, p. 562). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press)

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15. they might not depart] The singers and porters remained at their posts, while other Levites sacrificed for them and brought them their share of the lambs. (Barnes, A. (1879). Notes on the Old Testament: I Samuel to Esther. (F. C. Cook, J. M. Fuller, Eds.) (p. 430). London: John Murray)

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Ver. 15. Singers in their place. Song in God’s house. 1. Its nature. Spiritual, appropriate, and spirited. Certain Psalms 113–118 inclusive. Resolve, “I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.” 2. Its leaders. Numbered, stationed, and qualified. This needful and helpful. Organist, clerk, and choir should be early in place, devout in spirit, and orderly in all things. 3. Its design. Not a musical performance for gratification of the people; not to display ability, culture, and efficiency in singers: but to please God (Phil. 2:8–10), and praise Christ. Pliny found in worship of Bithynians a hymn “to Christ as God.” “Sentimental twaddle, sung by a congregation, is essentially carnalising and paganising. What sort of a nation will our ‘Songs of Zion’ make? Are they of Zion? Some of them have a look of Rome, and some of Racow [Prof. J. Macgregor, D.D.]. (Wolfendale, J. (1892). I & II Chronicles (pp. 315–316). New York; London; Toronto: Funk & Wagnalls Company)

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35:10–14. When all was ready the festival began with the slaughter of the lambs by the Levites who then handed over the blood to the priests for sprinkling on the great altar. The burnt offerings, those sheep and goats not intended for use in the Passover, were distributed along with the cattle to the people. The Passover sacrifices were then roasted and boiled as the Law required (cf. Ex. 12:7–9; Deut. 16:7). After that the Levites prepared the burnt offerings for their own and the priests’ consumption since the priests were so busy with the Passover service. Since only lambs and goats were sacrificed as Passover victims and for evening and morning offerings (cf. Ex. 29:38–45) the cattle were used for thank or fellowship offerings (cf. Lev. 3:1–5). (Merrill, E. H. (1985). 2 Chronicles. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 647). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books)

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FROM MY READING: 

(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)

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Esther 7
Haman’s plot is revealed, and he is hanged.
INSIGHT

The final irony falls. Haman hangs on the gallows which he had constructed for Mordecai. Pride has come full circle; sin has self-destructed. Satan is called the deceiver and the destroyer; he deceives in order to destroy. He gets us to commit ourselves to a course of action which we think will achieve our aims, and, in the end, it destroys us. If you are on any course of action which you feel will achieve your aims–but the course of action is wrong–give it up. Unchecked, you will eventually be destroyed by it.

                                                (Quiet Walk)

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Esther 8
Mordecai is honored and promoted.
INSIGHT

The law of the Medes and Persians cannot be revoked. Once written, no one, not even the king, can rescind it. The law to annihilate the Jews is carved in stone. Since the original plan cannot be revoked, a clever counter-plan is conceived to neutralize it. Permission is given to the Jews to arm themselves and to assemble and defend themselves. In addition, Mordecai is raised to power, replacing the position previously occupied by Haman. God’s sovereign protection of His people in exile is in its final stages. The integrity of Esther and Mordecai is rewarded. Righteousness triumphs.  (Quiet Walk)

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O NEAR AND YET SO FAR

Thou art not far from the kingdom of God.  Mark 12:34
If people are not sure whether they are Christians or not, then I take leave to suggest that they are not. The Christian, according to the New Testament, is someone who can say something like this: “I was–I am.” That is how the apostle described the Corinthians, was it not–He said, “And such were some of you!” They had been drunkards, adulterers, fornicators, etc. “But,” he says, “you are not like that now–“But ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God'” (1 Corinthians 6:11). The apostle Peter used exactly the same terminology: “Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy” (1 Peter 2:10). That is it!
There are variations in people’s relative positions with respect to this kingdom. Our Lord said about one of the scribes who came to him, “Thou art not far from the kingdom of God.” He did not say that about everybody, but He did say it about him. So outside the kingdom people can be in one of many, many positions.
There are people who have never given it a thought, who have never read the Bible and are not interested in it–they do not know its barest elements. They are not interested in God, in the Lord Jesus Christ, or in the soul, and they live the kind of life that we can see all around us.
Although there are different positions occupied by men and women outside the kingdom of God, in the last analysis they do not matter at all. There is no advantage in being “not far from the kingdom.” “But,” you reply, “do you mean to say that the person who is at the very door has no advantage over the one who is, as it were, at the other end of the world?” Precisely! And that is where the devil deludes so many.
A Thought to Ponder: There is no advantage in being “not far from the kingdom.”
               (From The Kingdom of God, pp. 176-178, by Dr. Martyn  Lloyd-Jones)

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When the Foundations Are Destroyed
“If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psalm 11:3)
The word here for “foundations” is not the usual word for, say, a building foundation. Used rarely, a better translation of this word would be “purpose,” or “basis.” The fear expressed is not that the foundations of our faith might be undermined but that we might lose our sense of purpose.
In the context of the psalm, David was in danger of becoming demoralized by the pressures of wicked desires and evil ambitions all around him, and Christians surely have the same problem today. Why should we try to maintain high standards of doctrinal integrity and moral purity when the people around us—even most Christians—seem to be occupied mostly with materialistic ambition and pursuit of pleasure? If we allow the devil to undermine the very purposes God has for our lives, wandering away from His will in favor of some temporal interest, then why even continue with a pretense of Christian living?
David’s solution was simply to remind himself that “the LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’s throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men” (v. 4). He may allow the righteous to be tried for a season, but we must not forget that “the righteous LORD loveth righteousness” (v. 7) and that “the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth” (v. 5).
When we are tempted to wonder whether it is really worth all the effort, and when our very foundation and purpose for living seems to be crumbling, we should remember that our God is Creator, Sustainer, and Judge of all—that He still is on His throne, and that we who belong to Him have been “predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will” (Ephesians 1:11).

                    (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)

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                                       Firm Refusal

Daniel . . . still pray[ed] three times a day. Daniel 6:13When the Nazis drafted Franz Jägerstätter during World War II, he completed military basic training but refused to take the required pledge of personal loyalty to Adolf Hitler. Authorities allowed Franz to return to his farm, but they later summoned him to active duty. After seeing Nazi ideology up close and learning of the Jewish genocide, however, Jägerstätter decided his loyalty to God meant he could never fight for the Nazis. He was arrested and sentenced to execution, leaving behind his wife and three daughters.

Over the years, many believers in Jesus—under peril of death—have offered a firm refusal when commanded to disobey God. The story of Daniel is one such story. When a royal edict threatened that anyone “who pray[ed] to any god or human being except [the king]” (Daniel 6:12) would be thrown into the lions’ den, Daniel discarded safety and remained faithful. “Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before” (v. 10). The prophet would bend his knee to God—and only God—no matter the cost.

Sometimes, our choice is clear. Though everyone around us implores us to go along with prevailing opinion—though our own reputation or well-being may be at risk—may we never turn from our obedience to God. Sometimes, even at great cost, all we can offer is a firm refusal.    By Winn Collier     (Our Daily Bread)

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Why did Judah decay? Because the people turned from the Lord and worshiped false gods. At first, their godless worship was in secret: they worshiped the Lord in the temple, but also worshiped Baal and other gods in secret. Then they openly turned from the Lord to worship the gods of their enemies. When the Lord sent chastening to them, they repented for a time, but soon they went back to their evil ways. Whenever the Lord would raise up a godly king, his influence didn’t last, because the people “reformed” but didn’t repent and turn to God with all their hearts. Whatever the king did was the popular thing to do, so they did it.

The church today must beware of the same kind of spiritual decay. Are we worshiping the gods of the enemy? Are we proud of our buildings and budgets and statistics? Is there evidence of true holiness and a fear of God in our worship? Are we dependent on the spiritual leaders God gives us? Are we experiencing success because the Lord is with us or because we cooperate with the world? Do we think that because we have the Bible and church buildings and “successful ministries” that God will overlook our sins and stay His hand of discipline? “For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God” (1 Peter 4:17).

At any time during those centuries of spiritual decay, the people of Judah could have met the conditions of 2 Chron. 7:14, and God would have healed their land. But they would not turn back to God, so God had to turn against them.

What a lesson for God’s people today! (Wiersbe, W. W. (1993). Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the Old Testament (2 Ch 13–36). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books)

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BORN AGAIN
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God….Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
John 3:3,5
When our Lord says, “Ye must be born again,” He throws down the gauntlet. He says in effect, “It is all right; I know what you are going to say, but you need not say it–it is all wrong–you must be born again.” “Verily, verily”–“truly, truly.” Whenever He uses that formula He is always saying something of unusual seriousness and of deep import. He says, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”
This is the crucial phrase, the key phrase of Christianity: “born again”! Some people say it should be translated “born from above.” Others say it should be translated “born anew.” I think that they are probably nearest to the truth who say that undoubtedly our Lord was speaking to Nicodemus in Aramaic, that the Greek is a translation from the Aramaic, and that then our English is a translation from the Greek. But the original was probably Aramaic, and there it means “except a man has another birth, he will never see the kingdom of God.” It is the same thing. “Born again,” “another birth,” “born from above,” “born of the Spirit”–take any of the terms you like.
This is the great New Testament doctrine, and what it means, negatively, is that Christianity is not just an addition to something you already have. Christianity, in other words, is not something that you and I, as we are, can take up; all that is contradicted here we need an entirely new start.
A Thought to Ponder
This is the crucial phrase, the key phrase of Christianity: “born again”
              From The Kingdom of God, pp. 193-194,by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

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Please pray for the family:  Feb 21 (Reuters) – U.S. evangelist Billy Graham, who counseled presidents and preached to millions across the world from his native North Carolina to communist North Korea during his 70 years on the pulpit, died on Wednesday at the age of 99, a spokesman said.

Graham died at 8 a.m. EST (1300 GMT) at his home in Montreat, North Carolina, according to Jeremy Blume, a spokesman for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

With his steely features and piercing blue eyes, Graham was a powerful figure when he preached in his prime, roaming the stage and hoisting a Bible as he declared Jesus Christ to be the only solution to humanity’s problems.

According to his ministry, he preached to more people than anyone else in history, reaching hundreds of millions of people either in person or via TV and satellite links.

Graham became the de facto White House chaplain to several U.S. presidents, most famously Richard Nixon. He also met with scores of world leaders and was the first noted evangelist to take his message behind the Iron Curtain.

“He was probably the dominant religious leader of his era,” said William Martin, author of “A Prophet with Honor: The Billy Graham Story.” “No more than one or two popes, perhaps one or two other people, came close to what he achieved.”

In a rare trip away from his home in his later years, Graham had celebrated his 95th birthday on Nov. 7, 2013, at a hotel in Asheville, North Carolina, where some 800 guests, including Republican politician Sarah Palin, business magnates Rupert Murdoch and Donald Trump and television hostess Kathie Lee Gifford paid tribute.

The celebration featured a video of a sermon that his son Franklin said was Graham’s last message to the nation. Graham had been working for a year on the video, which was aired on Fox News. In it, he said America was “in great need of a spiritual awakening.”

In his prime Graham had a thunderous, quick-burst speaking style that earned him the nickname “God’s Machine Gun.” Through his “Crusades for Christ,” Graham sowed fields of devotion across the American heartland that would become fertile ground for the growth of the religious right’s conservative political movement.

His influence was fueled by an organization that carefully planned his religious campaigns, putting on international conferences and training seminars for evangelical leaders, Martin said.

Graham’s mastery of the media was ground-breaking. In addition to radio and publishing, he used telephone lines, television and satellites to deliver his message to homes, churches and theaters around the world.

Some 77 million saw him preach in person while nearly 215 million more watched his crusades on television or through satellite link-ups, a Graham spokeswoman said.

Graham started meeting with presidents during the tenure of Harry Truman. He played golf with Gerald Ford, skinny-dipped in the White House pool with Lyndon Johnson, vacationed with George H.W. Bush and spent the night in the White House on Nixon’s first day in office.

George W. Bush gave Graham credit for helping him rediscover his faith and in 2010, when it was difficult for Graham to travel, Barack Obama made the trip to the preacher’s log cabin home in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

Graham’s ties to the White House were mutually beneficial. His reputation was enhanced as preacher to the presidents, while the politicians boosted their standing with religiously inclined voters.

“Their personal lives – some of them – were difficult,” Graham, a registered Democrat, told Time magazine in 2007 of his political acquaintances. “But I loved them all. I admired them all. I knew that they had burdens beyond anything I could ever know or understand.”

Graham’s reputation took a hit because of Nixon after the release of 1972 White House tapes in which the two were heard making anti-Semitic comments. Graham later said he did not remember the conversation and apologized.

In the early half of his career, Graham often spoke his mind on social and political issues of the day, including his strong anti-communist sentiments. He dismissed Vietnam War protesters as attention-seekers and, while he eventually refused to hold segregated revival meetings, he did not take an active role in the 1960s civil rights movement.

But Graham’s politics were not as overt as those of some religious leaders who came after him, such as Pat Robertson, who ran for president in 1988, and Jerry Falwell, co-founder of the Moral Majority, an organization whose purpose was to promote Christian-oriented politics.

As he grew older, Graham said he felt he had become too involved in some issues and shifted to a middle-of-the-road position in order to reach more people. He did, however, dive into the gay marriage issue in 2012 when he came out in support of a state amendment to ban same-sex marriages in North Carolina. He also met with Republican Mitt Romney in October 2012 and told him he supported Romney’s run for the presidency. 

FROM FARM TO PULPIT

William Franklin Graham was born on Nov. 7, 1918, into a Presbyterian family and was known as Billy Frank while growing up on a farm near Charlotte, North Carolina. As a teenager, he said he was mostly preoccupied with baseball and girls until he was moved by God after hearing a fiery revivalist in Charlotte.

After attending Bob Jones College, Graham ended up at a Bible school in Florida, where he would preach at his first revival, and was ordained in 1939 by a church in the Southern Baptist Convention. He received a scholarship to Wheaton College near Chicago, where he met Ruth Bell, whose parents were missionaries in China. They married in 1943.

Rather than work from a home church, Graham went on the road, preaching in tents and building a following. His breakthrough came with a 1949 Los Angeles tent crusade that was scheduled for three weeks but extended to eight because of the overflow crowds he attracted.

The success of the Los Angeles campaign and the fame it brought Graham was attributed to media magnate William Randolph Hearst, who had liked Graham’s style and anti-communist stance so much that he ordered his newspapers to give Graham a boost.

Graham eventually outgrew tent revivals and would preach at some of the most famous venues in the world, such as Yankee Stadium and Madison Square Garden in New York and London’s Wembley Stadium. He delivered sermons around the globe, including in remote African villages, China, North Korea, the Soviet Union, East Germany, Czechoslovakia and Hungary.

Liberals accused him of giving credibility to abusive governments while fundamentalist Christians criticized him for going to godless countries and promoting peaceful relations with them. Graham said he simply saw the trips as apolitical opportunities to win souls for Christ.

Graham concluded his career of religious campaigns in June 2005 in New York with a three-day stand that attracted more than 230,000 people, his organization said. He turned over his evangelical association to his son Franklin. Graham’s other four children were also evangelists

 REPUTATION

Graham managed to maintain his public integrity even as other TV star evangelists such as Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart, were hit in the 1980s by financial and sex scandals. To keep his reputation pristine, Graham had a policy of never being alone with any woman other than Ruth.

Graham’s closest presidential relationship was with Nixon, who offered him any government job he wanted – including ambassador to Israel. It turned out to be a painful relationship for Graham, who said Nixon and his circle misled him on the Watergate scandal.

Nixon aide H.R. Haldeman first mentioned Graham’s anti-Semitic remarks in a 1994 book, which Graham strongly denied. But when audio tapes from the Nixon White House were released in 2002, Graham could be heard referring to Jews as pornographers and agreeing with Nixon that the U.S. media was dominated by liberal Jews and could send the United States “down the drain.”

Graham, who had a long history of supporting Israel, apologized again after the tapes’ release and said he had no recollection of the conversation.

“If it wasn’t on tape, I would not have believed it,” Graham told Newsweek. “I guess I was trying to please. I felt so badly about myself – I couldn’t believe it. I went to a meeting with Jewish leaders and I told them I would crawl to them to ask their forgiveness.”

The author of more than two dozen books with titles such as “How to Be Born Again,” Graham also ran the weekly “Hour of Decision” radio program broadcast around the world on Sundays for more than 50 years.

Graham helped bring religion into the television age. He first put together a television show, which was eventually syndicated, in 1951 and began live broadcasts of his revival meetings in 1957 from New York’s Madison Square Garden.

In a 2011 Fox News interview, Graham was asked what he would do differently in his career.

“I would study more. I would pray more, travel less, take less speaking engagements,” he said. “I took too many of them in too many places around the world. If I had it to do over again, I’d spend more time in meditation and prayer and just telling the Lord how much I love him.”

In addition to suffering with Parkinson’s disease for many years, Graham’s health problems in his later years included a broken hip, a broken pelvis, prostate cancer and installation of a shunt in his brain to control excess fluid. He was hospitalized in 2011, 2012 and 2013 for respiratory problems.

Graham and his wife, Ruth, who died June 14, 2007, had two sons and three daughters. (Reporting by Ed Stoddard; Writing by Bill Trott; Editing by Frances Kerry and Diane Craft.

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